Emirates A380 to London Heathrow declares emergency at 40,000ft and diverts to Frankfurt

Emirates A380 to London Heathrow declares emergency at 40,000ft and diverts to Frankfurt Emirates flight EK31 was operating between Dubai and London when a medical emergency on board forced it to land in Frankfurt A UK-bound Emirates flight declared a mid-air emergency before diverting to Frankfurt after a passenger fell ill onboard. Flight EK31 was travelling from Dubai International Airport to London Heathrow when the Airbus A380 squawked 7700 about six hours into the journey. The aircraft had departed Dubai at around 11.30am local time (7.29am BST) today before landing safely at Frankfurt Airport roughly six hours later. Emirates said the diversion was caused by a medical emergency involving a passenger. The same aircraft is expected to continue its journey to Heathrow this evening, due to take off at about 6pm local Frankfurt time (5pm BST). An Emirates spokesperson said: "Emirates can confirm that flight EK31 from Dubai to London Heathrow diverted to Frankfurt on 1 October due to a medical emergency involving a passenger onboard. "Our cabin crew provided assistance during the flight, and medical support was arranged on arrival. The aircraft landed safely in Frankfurt, where the passenger disembarked to receive further medical attention. "The flight is expected to continue its journey to London Heathrow at approximately 18:00 local Frankfurt time. We apologise to customers for the delay. The health and safety of our passengers and crew is always our highest priority." The 7700 squawk code is declared by pilots when an aircraft experiences an in-flight emergency that requires immediate priority handling and assistance from air traffic controllers. Such emergencies include mechanical failures, onboard safety threats, medical emergencies or unclear or escalating situations.